Baklava

Ingredients

• 160g (2/3 cup) sugar
• 125ml (1/2 cup) water
• 2 tsp fresh lemon juice
• Melted butter, to grease
• 1 200g pkt walnut pieces
• 10 sheets filo pastry (Antoniou brand)
• 50g unsalted butter, melted

Method

1. Place the sugar, water and lemon juice in a medium saucepan and bring to the boil over high heat. Reduce heat to medium and simmer, uncovered, without stirring, for 10 minutes or until the liquid reduces by a quarter. Set aside for 10 minutes to cool slightly.
2. Meanwhile, preheat oven to 180°C. Grease a square 17cm (base measurement) cake pan or ovenproof dish with melted butter. Place walnuts in the bowl of a food processor and process in short bursts to roughly chop.
3. Lay pastry on a clean surface. Cover with a dry tea towel, then a damp one. Brush half a sheet with a little butter and fold in half crossways. Trim to fit base of greased pan. Place in pan and sprinkle with 2 tsp of walnuts. Continue with remaining pastry, butter and walnuts, finishing with pastry. Brush with butter. Cut baklava lengthways into quarters and then crossways into quarters to make squares. Cut the squares in half diagonally.
4. Bake in preheated oven for 40 minutes or until golden brown. Remove from the oven and slowly pour the cooled syrup over the pastry. Set aside for 20 minutes to cool completely and serve with Lebanese coffee (awahe).

Notes

• 
  The syrup (step 1) can be made up to 2 days ahead and kept in an airtight container in the fridge. Continue from step 2 up to 1 day ahead.

Ingredients

• 50g reduced-fat dairy spread (Devondale brand), melted
• 85g (3/4 cup) coarsely ground walnuts
• 65g (1/2 cup) coarsely ground blanched almonds
• 60g (1 cup) plain sponge cake crumbs
• 2 tbs caster sugar
• 3/4 tsp ground cinnamon
• 1/4 tsp ground cloves
• 11 sheets filo pastry (Antoniou brand), halved crossways

• Syrup

• 1 lemon
• 115g (1/2 cup) caster sugar
• 185ml (3/4 cup) water
• 60ml (1/4 cup) honey
• 1 cinnamon stick
• 1 whole clove

Method

1. Preheat oven to 180°C. Brush a 20 x 30cm (base measurement) lamington pan with a little of the melted spread to lightly grease.
2. To make the syrup, use a vegetable peeler to cut rind from lemon (avoiding any white pith) and place in a saucepan. Add sugar, water, honey, cinnamon stick and clove. Stir over low heat until sugar dissolves. Bring to a simmer over medium heat and cook, uncovered, for 2 minutes. Set aside to cool.
3. Meanwhile, combine the walnuts, almonds, cake crumbs, sugar, cinnamon and cloves in a bowl and mix well. Set aside.
4. Place filo pastry on a clean work surface. Cover with a clean tea towel, then a damp tea towel. Brush 1 filo sheet lightly with spread. Place another sheet on top and brush lightly with spread. Repeat with another 5 sheets to make a 7-sheet stack. Repeat with remaining filo and spread to make two more stacks (discard remaining sheet of filo).
5. Place a filo stack in the prepared pan. Spoon half the nut filling into the pan and spread evenly. Place another stack on top of filling and trim to fit. Spoon remaining nut filling on top and spread evenly. Place remaining stack on top and trim to fit. Use a very sharp knife to cut carefully through all layers into thirds lengthways. Holding the edge of the pieces, cut crossways on the diagonal into sixths (to make 14 diamond-shaped pieces). Bake in preheated oven for 20 minutes. Cover with foil and bake for a further 20 minutes or until golden.
6. Remove baklava from oven and pour the cooled syrup evenly over the top. Set aside for 2 hours to cool. Cut through the marked lines and serve with Greek coffee, if desired.

Ingredients

• 4 x 150g pkt walnuts, chopped
• 2 1/3 cups (300g) caster sugar
• 1 tsp cinnamon
• 20 sheets filo
• 80g butter, melted
• 1 1/2 cups (375ml) water
• 2 cinnamon sticks
• 1 tbs lemon juice
• 1/4 cup (60ml) honey

Method

1. Preheat oven to 180°C. Spray a 20cm x 30cm slab pan with oil. Combine 4 x 150g pkt walnuts, chopped, 1/3 cup (80g) caster sugar and 1 tsp cinnamon.
2. Use 20 sheets filo and 80g butter, melted. Make 4 stacks, layer 5 sheets per stack, brushing layers with butter. Put a stack in pan. Top with one-third of walnut mixture. Repeat layers, finishing with filo. Cut into four. Bake for 25-30 minutes.
3. Stir 2 cups (220g) caster sugar, 1 1/2 cups (375ml) water, 2 cinnamon sticks, 1 tbs lemon juice over low heat until sugar dissolves. Bring to boil, add 1/4 cup (60ml) honey. Remove sticks. Pour over hot slice and cool.

Ingredients

• 375g (1 packet) filo pastry
• 180g butter, melted & cooled
• 2 tsp water

• filling

• 150g walnut pieces
• 150g unsalted pistachios
• 55g (1/4 cup) caster sugar
• 1tsp ground cinnamon

• honey syrup

• 1 375g jar honey
• 165g (3/4 cup) sugar
• 250mls (1 cup) water
• 1 lemon, rind finely grated and juiced

Method

1. Preheat oven to 180°C To make the filling, spread the walnuts on a baking tray and lightly toast in the preheated oven for 5-8 minutes or until aromatic. Cool.
2. Combine walnuts, pistachios, sugar and cinnamon in the bowl of a food processor and process using the pulse button until they are finely chopped.
3. Remove the filo pastry from its packet and lie flat on the work bench. Cover with a dry tea towel and then a damp tea towel. (This will keep the filo from drying out while making the baklava.)
4. Brush a shallow 18 x 28cm cake tin with some of the butter. Take 1/3 of the sheets of filo. Brush the top sheet generously with butter and fold into thirds to make a rectangle the size of the tin. Place in the base of the buttered tin and brush surface with butter.
5. Continue layering with the left over 1/3 of pastry. Spread 1/2 of the nut filling over the filo to cover. Layer 1/2 of the remaining filo sheets as before. Spread left over nut filling over filo and top with the remaining layered buttered filo sheets. Lightly brush top with remaining butter.
6. Using a sharp knife, cut a diamond pattern into the top layer of filo and sprinkle with the water. Bake in preheated oven for 30 minutes. Cover with foil and cook for 45 minutes longer or until the filo layers are cooked through.
7. Meanwhile, to make the honey syrup, combine honey, sugar, water, lemon rind and juice in a saucepan and stir over high heat until sugar dissolves. Bring to the boil and maintain over medium heat for 10 minutes or until the syrup has thickened slightly.
8. Remove from heat and allow to cool. When cooked, remove baklava from the oven and immediately pour the cooled syrup evenly over the surface. Stand to cool completely. Cover with foil and store at room temperature in the tin for up to 2 weeks.
9. Cut into diamond shapes to serve with espresso coffee or as a dessert with whipped cream.